Kent State (2-3, 1-1 Mid-American Conference) plans to be careful today. Northern Illinois had more takeaways last week (five) than Kent State has had all year (four).

“When you try to force things, they have a lot of playmakers that can make plays and we saw that with Purdue,” Kent State coach Paul Haynes said. “They’ve done that all year long. They are not overly aggressive, but they don’t have to be.”

“Turnovers are funny,” NIU coach Rod Carey said. “You get them or you don’t. They kind of come in waves. Sometimes you get in situations where the ball seems to fall in your lap with fumbles and picks. Other times you can’t buy one when you are playing great defense.”

If NIU’s turnover spigot dries up today, the Huskies may need to contain Dri Archer to win this rematch of last year’s MAC title game, won by NIU in double overtime. Archer returned from an ankle injury last week and had 83 yards rushing and 55 receiving in his first game, a 32-14 win at Western Michigan. Archer averaged 9.2 yards per carry and 11 yards a catch.

As a junior, Archer ran for 1,429 yards (averaging 9.0 yards per carry), with 561 yards receiving and three touchdowns on kickoff returns.

“He’s a lot like Tommylee (Lewis) on our team,” linebacker Michael Santacaterina said. “He’s very fast, very quick. They give him the ball in space a lot. They put him in the slot, out wide, they put him in the backfield. You can’t let him get running free.

“We have to be pointing him out the whole time. Every time he comes out, we’re going to say, ‘No. 1. No. 1.’ ”

Carey said Archer is the fastest player he’s ever seen on film.

“He’s got good wiggle and good vision too and he’s a tough kid,” Carey said. “We have to get him on the ground any way we can.”

“He’s disruptive. He’s physical. He makes a lot of plays,” Carey said. “He’s the heart of that defense. He plays so hard that he comes out every once in awhile because he doesn’t have anything left in the tank. Then his tank fills up quick and he comes back in and plays that hard again.”